A visit to the "Samurai
Castle" - Himejijo
By Deborah Klens-Bigman, Ph.D.
"If you are going to Osaka,"
my Japanese friend said, "you should consider
going to Himeji. It is just a short distance by train,
and they have a castle there that's considered the
best one in Japan."
Chances are, if you've seen any chambara or historical
Japanese films, you've seen an exterior shot of a
beautiful castle, probably framed by trees either
in spectacular full bloom, or arrayed in autumn foliage.
Just in case you've ever wondered where that beautiful
building is (or in case you thought Japan was full
of 'em), the castle is Himejijo. Himejijo dominates
the little town of Himeji, in Hyogo prefecture, near
the coast of the Inland Sea.
Himeji is a short ride by Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka
station, and, though it takes at least half a day
to view the castle and grounds, it is definitely worth
the time. Out of curiosity, and bored with the fact
that the pace of Osaka is too much like that of New
York City, I boarded the train on a rain-soaked day
in late May, to visit Himeji.
What makes Himejijo unique, aside from its beautiful
form and setting, is that the castle is an authentic
example of Edo period castle architecture, more perfectly
preserved than any other castle in Japan. As such,
it gives insight into Edo period military thinking,
and the way of life of the warrior class of the time.
Since it was never attacked, and was miraculously
preserved from fire, the castle complex existed essentially
intact until recent times.
Recent times took their toll, however.
During the Meiji Restoration the outlying samurai
residences were razed to create a parade ground for
the Imperial Army (the area is now an athletic field).
Then, at the beginning of the 20th century, a bad
storm brought down the one of the small towers on
the eastern side. Realizing that a structure that
had withstood so much over 300 years was now in danger
of being lost forever, the Showa government undertook
a restoration. Work began in 1934, but was suspended
during the Pacific War and Allied Occupation. Work
resumed in 1956 and the restoration was finally finished
in 1964 (4: 2). In 1993, Himejijo was added to UNESCO's
World Heritage List (2: 1).
Himejijo started as a set of fortified buildings
on a flat hilltop as early as the 14th century. The
location allowed a clear view of territory all around,
so if an enemy were to approach, he would come into
view from some distance away. Three hundred years
later, after the battle of Sekigahara, Tokugawa Ieyasu
set about giving lands to his loyal commanders, both
to reward their loyalty and to guard against uprisings
by any leftover rival factions. In 1601, Ieyasu gave
the area including Himeji to his son-in-law, Ikeda
Terumasa (1564 - 1613).  Times
being what they were, with bands of fighters still
loyal to the defeated Toyotomi clan lurking about,
Ikeda immediately set about building a castle on the
hilltop which had been so useful to his predecessors
(1: 1-2).
The work went remarkably quickly, with Ikeda commandeering
stones from temples and accepting donations from local
citizens. It is estimated that the construction of
the daitenshukaku (central tower) took only one year
to complete as it now stands - five exterior levels,
six actual interior levels, plus a basement. (Why
the additional level is not reflected on the exterior
is unknown. It is also unknown if this was a rule
for castle architecture, or just a quirk of this particular
structure.) The center of the main tower is anchored
by two large pillars - one made of a single piece
of wood, the other of two pieces (architects have
speculated that the reason for the two pieces in the
west pillar was to allow for compensation for additional
stress during construction, if needed) (5: 7-9). By
1609, Ikeda's work was complete, including the daitenshukaku
and three kotenshukaku (small towers).
|
 The
kotenshukaku were built to provide better observation
of the surrounding area. Two of these small
towers still stand.
In spite of the speed with which the Himejijo
complex was constructed, aesthetic consideration
with regard to the architectural design and
layout of the site was remarkably taken into
account. The complex has the well-deserved nickname
of "Shirasagijo" ("white crane
castle") owing to its snowy white walls
and overall appearance of looking like a large
bird ready to take graceful flight.
|
As impressive as the main buildings
are, the arrangement of the surrounding area is also
a feat of strategic planning and engineering skill.
The grounds are laid out as a three-layer, counter-clockwise
rotating spiral, protected by a double moat. The spiraling
ring design allows for multiple lines of defense and
creates a maze-like effect that could confuse an invading
enemy unfamiliar with the layout (5:2) (a ground plan
can be seen at virtualclassroom.org.
At least half of the time it takes to walk around
Himejijo is taken up with navigating this maze of
pathways. Many outbuildings (approximately 80 of them)
are still extant, including yagura (lit. "arrow
houses") and various small gates.
Even though there are numerous helpful
signs posted, it is entirely possible to get turned
around more than once, as well as find some interesting
nook or cranny that does not quite seem to show up
on the map.
Once entering through the enormous main gate, one
can see slits for both arrows and firearms in the
walls high above.
Continued
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